The COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech was able to neutralise a new variant of the coronavirus spreading rapidly in Brazil.
That's according to a laboratory study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, which showed that patients who received a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine showed stronger antibody protection.
The study, conducted by scientists from the companies and the University of Texas Medical Branch, looked at blood samples from 15 volunteers in Pfizer’s phase 3 clinical trial of its vaccine.
Their samples were then exposed to an engineered version of the virus that contained the same mutations carried on the spike portion of the highly contagious P.1 variant.
Further examination found that the antibodies were successful at neutralising the viral mutations.
In previously published studies, Pfizer had found that its vaccine neutralised other more contagious variants first identified in the United Kingdom and South Africa, although the South African variant may reduce protective antibodies elicited by the vaccine.
Pfizer has said it believes its current vaccine is highly likely to still protect against the South African variant. However, the drugmaker is planning to test a third booster dose of their vaccine as well as a version retooled specifically to combat the variant in order to better understand the immune response.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday, the first stop in a broader trip to the Middle East to discuss issues including the governance of Gaza once the war with Israel ends.
The World Central Kitchen has announced its resumption of operations in the Gaza Strip, four weeks after seven of its employees were killed in an Israeli air attack.
At least four people died, including a four-month-old baby, and scores were injured in Oklahoma this weekend after dozens of twisters swept the US Southern Plains, while weather alerts on Sunday put more than 7 million Americans under tornado warnings.
Pope Francis offered encouragement to prisoners, artists and young people in Venice on Sunday, with his first trip of the year testing his mobility and resilience after a number of health scares in recent months.
Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein was taken to hospital in poor health his lawyer confirmed, just days after his 2020 conviction in New York was overturned.
A gold pocket watch, which was recovered from the body of the richest man on the Titanic, has sold for over 4.1m dirham at auction, along with other items recovered from the sunken ship.
An Arab ministerial coordination meeting in Riyadh emphasised the necessity of ending the conflict on the Gaza Strip and the lifting of all restrictions that hinder the entry of humanitarian aid.
Lebanon has moved towards accepting the International Criminal Court's jurisdiction to prosecute violations on Lebanese territory since October, in what Human Rights Watch said on Saturday was a "landmark step" towards justice for war crimes.
Welcome to Pinoy Bulletin, your go-to source for staying informed about important announcements, exciting group activities, community events, and job opportunities!
Welcome to Pinoy Bulletin, your go-to source for staying informed about important announcements, exciting group activities, community events, and job opportunities!
Welcome to Pinoy Bulletin, your go-to source for staying informed about important announcements, exciting group activities, community events, and job opportunities!